Apparatus for spray drying



July 7, 1953 A. G. BRENDEL 2,644,516

APPARATUS FOR SPRAY DRYING Filed July 21. 1949 v 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 6 5 l I 7 J I I I 4 27 27 W 1 V3 7 a P l:@ /6

ATTO NEY July 7, 1953 A. G. BRENDEL 2,644,516

APPARATUS FOR SPRAY DRYING Filed July 21. 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTOR EY July 7, 1953 A. G. BRENDEL 2,644,516

APPARATUS FOR SPRAY DRYING Filed July 21. 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 l N V E N TO R ,4/P/W/A aAwz/vazz TTT'OQNEY y 1953 A. G. BRENDEL 2,644,516

} APPARATUS FOR SPRAY DRYING Filed July 21. 1949 5' Sheets-Sheet 4 54 UPI? Y ZZIX+ZD%EY v 'INVENTOR July 7, 1953 A. G. BRENDEL 2,644,516

APPARATUS FOR SPRAY DRYING Filed July 21. 1949 5 SheetsSheet 5 INVENTOR mP/w/v a. KATA 2Z1,

Z/1. f) M/ ATTO NEY ram OFF-ICE Armin 1 G s uffern; N. l YQ, assignor to" Ame ican gyananiid Compansg New ork, N. Y.

zThis invention ire1ate to a "apparatus-rand diantlheatias wel l tothe sensible heat of the process-tor drymg ssolid material-dissolvedor sus gases; whereby a numberof improvements are Obj pended i'n a liquid" iIhe principallobj-ect ofthe 1tainedrylhavetfound that by introducing radiant invention is :to provides; method an'd apparatus heat into. the topof the spray drying chamber, for this purposezwhich lwill producea spiay dried 5 where the major partxofsthe water evaporation product of fine pai tic size-and, if-desirediof -i-m takes rpiace andthe; solid .material assumesits proved1spericity;;- Arstiii funther' object is to pro final formia much faster Ldryingrate is achieved; vide-a spray dry ing method-and apparatus which This results in the .vlfor-mation of .microspheres ofv camber operated at very high capacity; Another. improved Jsphericity.andzsmalier-average particle object-is the provision of-a spray drying appasize; also increases ;the: c'apacity of the iappae ratus :that 6311159 BUHS131110178U.* i rl-fllnits fif -1a'rg'e rat-us so .that a :greater quantity of :spray dried size; with ca corresponding reduction in cost per materialycanabe produced :in an apparatus of any pound of :spraydried material. Other objects will given size *per unit of time. Furthermore, the tinbecome apparent'ifrom the following detaileddetr-odu'ctioniofsradiant heat :over the entire top scription of a preferred=-iembo" iirnent -o f5the insurface of the spray drying chamber'has-zenabied ventioniz when takeniwiththe'appendedclaimspy me to obt'aima Idried productof uniformly small 2 Althoughhot limite'd athereto, :the- 1? 0eS'S and particle size in apparatus of trelativelytlarg'e die abparatusof th iinventien arei particularly well ameter, Wi-th'Ia :further increase in dryingcaadapted 'for the-spmydrYi-Iigofslurries-containpacity. soi'increasin .theadiameter of the ing gelatino'u's silica including silica-alumina;- spray dryingichambenxl amJenabled to .emp1oy S li a-magnesia 1 andi ica-a1umina-magnesia a motor'fo r the cspraymheelof more'thantwice compositionsftor use in the catalytic cracking of the power o f th'osezthat have previously been used, petroleum hydrocarbons: For this reason the inw-ith weer-responding increase insthe amount of v'e'ntion 'will be'ii'escribed in' detai1=with particiislurry that can-zbe dispersedand spray dried i=p'er' lar referenceto the sii ay y g of'th'i's classh' r r materials; it being understood however;thatslur i In addition to the above opera ing vanta es.

ries or solutions of: other "solid'o'r --semi-so1' id "ma I certain str uctural advantages in the design of the t'er-"ial may pe driedtnerein;

spray drying'equipment :arewalso-Obtained byt-he 'ifiIn the s'pray dryi-ng-of silic-a-slurries forthepropresent invention. Principal among thesezi's the duction of microspheroidalcracking catalysts a 3g simplification ana -elimination.:duct work that tvi o=pha se slurry consistingofgwa'terqcontaining I results f-romlmountingtheiurnace on the top;.0f snia11 giobuies ei hydrated {silica silica-alumina; the-spray d :chamber: While I a t the I g iizg emg gi ma-lithe like is dispersed into'a fi-rst tO-suggest the location of .a furnace in'this guitrm'. 'f 'hot gasesin'a-"spray drying chamber; position (see Patent No. 117782322 to Hechen+ Usually' the slurry is dispersed by discharging it bl'ikner) ,=-my present-constructionretains all of onto a rapidly rotating vaned spray whee-manna the advantages p inted out in the Hechenbleikner -edinthe'top orthedryihe chamber; A current p'a d wp t er improvements of hctgas'es, su'ch as hot p'rodi-icts (if combustion; resulting in the increased drying rate and finer is admitted tangentially at t tatmgvortex intoWhich '40 abbvei l 7 yTh'e'irlvention will he further describedtwith pferipheryot the. 7 particle size o'f'the spray dried .pr'oductm'oted I aifome aipr oc'e's'sfof thistype'ifl a ag reference to the "specific embodiment thereof t onfltne water'or othrl iq g l m g" 55 e shown in the :attached drawings in which: slurrytakes place solely; by'the s'ehsih he of v "751 15;: l aside iew-of'a spray drieriand furnace the gases; so'that these-gases are rapi embodying-the nvention witha portionzof the The drying capacity of the apparatus is therefiirnace shown section. V

vtore' limited by th ef-amount of heat thatpan b Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the fiirnace y an'dtop :portion'of the spray drierwith parts -'1-:In ace 'rdanc with the present intention the broken'a-way, the section 'b'eing'taken on th qjn spraysofmaterierto beariea is subiectedtc re: 5O 2" bf ie 3.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2 with the motor and spray wheel in raised position.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged portion of Fig. 3.

Fig. is a vertical section through the motor and cooling jacket assembly.

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the top of the assembly of Fig. 5, showing the feed pipes and the pipes of h the cooling and lubricating system, and

Fig. '7 is a plan view of the slurry and emergency water distribution plate taken on the line of Fig. 5.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2 it will be seen that the assembly indicated generally by reference numeral l consists of a drying chamber 2 having a furnace 3 superimposed thereon, both being enclosed by a cylindrical side wall 4. Supporting beams 5 carrying a central well structure 6 are mounted on the top of this wall, as by vertical beams l. The lower portion of the drying chamber is preferably conical, as at 8, and terminates in a cylindrical outlet 9 containingan eccentrically mounted deflecting cone ifl surrounded by a duct l I. This duct leads to a set of centrifugal separators being connected in turn with an exhaustblower for drawing gases through the apparatus. A scrubber irrigated by water sprays may follow the exhaust blower when complete recovery of all of the dried material is desired.

As is shown most clearly in Figs. 2 and 3 the furnace 3 is formed within the top portion |2 of theside wall 4 by an insulated ceiling |3, which is suspended from the supporting beams 5 by rods l4 and hangers l5, and an imperforate heatradiating metal partition l6 which constitutes a floor for the furnace and a horizontal ceiling for the spray drying chamber. This metal partition serves the important function of radiating heat from the furnace into the particles of material in the upper portion of the spray drying chamber while preventing the uncontrolled admixture of additional quantities of hot gases therewith, whichincreases the drying capacity of the apparatus and aids informing a spray-dried material of controlled shape and particle size.

The partition 16 is made up of a set of metal plates laid on an equal number of radial beams l8 which are supported at their outer ends bytheside wall 4. At their inner ends l9 these beams are joined as at to a vertical annular bafile 2|, which is spaced outwardly from the centralwell 6 and forms therewith an annular passage 22. The baflie 2| and the inner ends of the beams |9 are supported by a ring of insulated rods 23 which extend through the ceiling of thejfurnace and arehung from the supporting beams 5. Near its lower edge, and preferably below the level of the beams I8, the bafiie is inclined inwardly at 24 to form a restricted portion 25 in which a set of inclined gas-directing vanes 25 is mounted.

Set in the outer wall |2 of the furnace are a number of burner tunnels 21, each enclosing a gasburner 28, These tunnels and burners are set at an angle between the radius and the tangent to the wall of the furnace, so that the flames from the burners travel through a spiral path. It. will be noted from Fig. 2 that the burners are mounted relatively closeto the metal floor I6, so that this floor soon becomes very hot and radiates a substantial proportion of the heat from the burners directly into the drying space below. The products of combustion, at the end of their spiral path around the furnace, pass upwardly over the vertical bafile 2| and down- 4 wardly through the spaces 22 and 25, being dc fiected by the vanes 26 into a vertically rotating path. 7

Under some conditions of operation it may be advisable to admit hot gases from the furnace 3 to the peripheral portion of the drying chamber 2. In order to accomplish this purpose a set of supplementary gas passages 3| is provided in the partition l6. Each of these passages is fitted with a connecting pipe 32 containing a damper 33 operating on a rod 34 that extends through the outer wall of the spray drying chamber, so that the damper can be" opened, closed or'adjusted from outside as is shown in Fig; 4 of the drawings. By suitable operation of these dampers the possibility of a dead air space in the outer upper portions of the spray drying chamber is avoided.

. As hasbeen stated, the drying capacity of the apparatus of thepresent invention is such that r a motor can be used having a greater power output than any heretofore employed for this purpose. Such a motor is shown on Fig. 5 of the drawings. While this motor, per se, is more or less conventional in design and is not a part of the present invention, its cooling system and the structure and location of the slurry feed and emergency water distribution pipes, and particularly the distribution plate whereby these are connected with the spray wheel 30, constitute important novel features of the invention.

Referring to Fig. 5, the spray machine indi-' cated generally by reference numeral 35 comprises a rotor 36 and a suitable stator 31, both mounted within a water jacketed enclosure 38. The upper and lower bearings 39 and 40 of the rotor shaft 4| are designed for operation at high speeds and are supplied with a spray of oil through pipes 42 and s 43 respectively. These bearings are mounted in upper and lower plates 45 and 46, a plan view of the upper plate 45 being shown in Fig. 6 of the drawings. Air ducts 41 and 48 are provided in the enclosure 38, through which air is forced to aid in cooling the motor. One of these air pipesris shown at 49 on Fig. 5, the air being admitted through port 50 and passing over the field 5|, through the rotor 36and out through openings 52 in the upper plate 45. The machine illustrated is a two pole, 3 phase, 150 H. P., 210 cycle motor operated with a frequency generator unit which can vary the frequency up to 260 cycles or down to 158 cycles,

thus giving any desired speed to the rotor shaft 4| between 9500 and 15,600 revolutions per minute.

The motor is enclosed by a water jacket 55 having a flat bottom 56 which forms with the lower plate 46 a water passage that surrounds and cools the lower bearings 40. Water inlet and outlet pipes 51 and 58 permit a continuous circulation of water through this jacket, thus protecting the-motor from the heat of the furnace in which it operates. Slurry pipes 59, 60 and 6| also pass through the cooling jacket 55 in order to avoidthe danger of clogging by premature heating and solidification of the solu tions or slurries to be spray dried. These pipes extend through the bottom 56 of the cooling jacket-and communicate with the distributor 62, which feeds the materials to be dried to the spray wheel 30.

The distributor 62 is made up of a lower body portion 63 and a cover plate 64 carrying a central annular shield 65, the body portion and cover plate being fastened together and .to the per minute, based on the heat balance.

edge 68 i and a set of slurry channels 69, I and H aligned at their outer endswith slurry pipes 59, 60"9J'I1d Bl respectively andhaviflg a downwardly turned:-1ip,-.as ;at12', at their iiiner ends. Corresponding openings in the cover plate, as at 13,;per-init the solution or; sliirry ',-to be dried-Ito fi'owj'thrdughthe channels "and 'dischar e over the li'p72 onto the spray wheel, which is of a conventional-type, fromwhich itjis thrown outwardl'y in the form of fine dropletsinto the 'dfyingchan'iber 2.

It is very important to maintain a constant new ofliquid. through the apparatilstimes Whefi the -furnace ."s is in operation as otherwise the spray wheel and probably other parts of spray drier would be damaged by the hot furnace gases. Provision is therefore made to discharge a stream of water on th spray wheel if theslurry pipes should become clogged or if the regular feed of slurry should be interrupted for any other reason. For this purpose an emergency water pipe 15 (Fig. 6)- is located above and in communication with a water channel 16 in the body portion 63 of the distributor. This water channel has a dam 11 across its inner end to prevent the chan- 8| which rests on an inner shoulder 82 in" the cylinder 80 when the motor and spray wheel are in operative position. The feed slurry, cooling water, compressed air, oil and emergency water are supplied to the inlet pipes shown on Fig. 6 of the drawings by suitable flexible connections, which are not shown, so that the spray machine can be raised through the cylinder 80 and removed for cleaning or repairs at any time. Electric current is also supplied to the motor by a flexible cable, which is not shown, and a suitable thermocouple well may also .be provided if desired. The central cylinder 80 is braced against vibration by a set of brackets 83 which span the annular space 84 between the inner cylinder 80 and the outer, insulated cylinder 85 of the central well structure 6. It will thus be seen that the spray machine is protected from the heat of the furnace, first by a layer of insulation 86 on the inner wall of the furnace, then by the air space 84, then by the water in the cooling jacket 55, and then by the cooling air.

The operation of the apparatus is best shown by a specific example of results which have been obtained herein. A slurry of a hydrated silicaalumina catalyst, containing 87%. of silica and 13% of alumina on the dry basis and prepared by suspending in water a precipitated, filtered and washed silica-alumina produced as described in th copending application of K. D. Ashle and A. O. Jaeger, Serial No. 573,078, filedwJanuary 16, 19%5, now Patent No. 2,478,519, dated August 9, 1949, was supplied at a solids content of about 6.8-8.0%. Natural gas was used as fuel in the furnace 3, which furnace contained 6 gas burners each having a capacity of 6,000,000 B. t. u. per hour. The gas flow was estimated at 2380 lbs. The

outlet gas tein'perature in the pipe H was 25o F.

The following operating results were Obtaiil'd' when "a 9-inch diameter, v-type spray wheel was used.

Atofulzing Speed, V I H H A,

R. P. 10,700 10,700 12; 700 -10,700- I 12,-700 Side Inlet Dampers 33 a open closed open open closed Gas Temp. C F l n a I Pas'sage 25: i 710 750 640 I 640 600 Screenhnalysis v A x I v =40 mesh, percent" 100 100 100 100 lOO' 100 mesh, percent; 95 97 99 99 100 2.0 mesh, percent 62 1 4 73 ,85 -401nicroh's,percent. 28 '31 40 30 43 -'20mierons,percent. 6 6 8 7 9 H -l01nicrons,pe rcent. 0 0 0 0 V 2 Water' Content of Product,.percentl. 13 l4 13 -12 12 what "I claim is:'

1. In a spray drier having a drying chamber, a furnace superimposed thereon, a central well extendin vertically through said furnace and into said drying chamber and a spray machine in the lower portion of said well for introduci liquid material to be dried into said chamber, the improvement which comprises a heat-radiating metal partition between said furnace and said I drying chamber, said partition constituting a floor for said furnace but terminating short of said central well to form therewith an annular passage, and gas burners positioned about the lower periphery of said furnace and adapted to discharge flaming hot gases across said partition and into said annular passage, whereby the liquid material to be dried is sprayed into a blanket of furnace gases partially cooled by transmission of heat to said partition and the resulting particles are then exposed to radiant heat 7 from the lower side of the metal partition,

- 2. In a spray drier having a drying chamber, a furnace superimposed thereon, a central well extending through said furnace and into said drying chamber and a spray machine in the lower portion of said well for introducing liquid material to be dried into said chamber, the improve ment which comprises a heat radiating metal partition between said furnace and said drying chamber, said partition constituting a floor for said furnace but terminating short of said central well in a vertical annular baflie which forms with I said well an annular passage for surrounding said spray machine with a flow of gases from said furnace, whereby the liquid material to be dried is sprayed into a blanket of furnace gases and the resulting particles are then exposed to radiant heat from the lower side of said metal partition.

3. A spray drier and furnace structure comprising in combination a vertical cylindrical side wall forming a chamber, supporting beams mounted on the top of said wall, a cylindrical well suspended from said beams in the upper portion of said chamber and concentric with the wall thereof, an insulated ceiling hung from said beams across the top of said chamber and surrounding said central well, a set of radial beams below said ceiling having inner ends spaced from said Well and supported at their outer ends by said wall and at their inner ends by insulated rods suspended from said supporting beams, and a set of metal floor plates laid across said radial beams and forming with said ceiling and the upper portion of the enclosing cylindrical wall a furnace chamber and with the lower portion of said wall a spray drying chamber, and a vertical cylindrical bafile mounted on the inner ends of said radial beams and forming with said well an annular passage for conducting gases from said furnace into the spray drying chamber.

4. A spray drier comprising in combination a drying chamber, a furnace superimposed thereon, gas burners positioned about the lower periphery of said furnace and adapted to discharge flaming hot gases thereinto, a heat-radiating metal partition constituting a ceiling for said drying chamber and a floor for said furnace positioned adjacent the path of said flaming gases and adapted to absorb a substantial proportion of the heat thereof and transmit it to said drying chamber as radiant heat with a corresponding reduction in the temperature of said gases, a central aperture in said metal partition for admitting the furnace gases so cooled into said drying chamber, and a spray machine positioned in said aperture but protected from direct contact with said gases by a surrounding well structure.

ARMIN G. BRENDEL.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,782,822 Hechenb1eikner. Nov. 25, 1930 2,396,689 Davis Mar. 19, 1946 2,450,599 Kloda Oct. 5, 1948 2,473,035 Meade et a1 June 14, 1949 2,478,779 Pieper Aug. 9, 1949 2,506,646 Komline May 9, 1950 2,566,229 Mackay Aug. 28, 1951 2,595,852 Hopper May 6, 1952 

